Sunday, April 08, 2007

Do You Know 'The Checklist' For Your Decade?

"Dr. Manny" arms you with informed health information you can use

A 37-year old businessman has to leave work early to pass a kidney stone. A 62-year old grandmother keeps turning the television up louder and louder to hear it while her grandkids cover their ears. A sad and despondent teenager thinks she is too fat and begins throwing up to help her lose weight. An expectant mother-to-be has high blood pressure and wonders how that will impact the health of her baby.

If there was a way to prevent these everyday moments in life from happening, would you want to know about it? If somehow you inherently knew what was about to happen to your health in the next 5, 10, even 50 years, then how would that change the way you live your life? What if there was some sort of manual to provide guidance and direction about how to stay ahead of the curve and actually prevent the most common ailments from afflicting you before they happen?

Most people know "Dr. Manny" from his fantastic work as a health correspondent on the FOX News Channel. Seeing a void in the health market for a book explaining what happens to the typical person at various stages of their life, Dr. Manny decided to write The Checklist so that people won't be caught off guard when calamity hits.

Of course, he is not so presumptuous to think that people can only be stricken with certain diseases and health complications during a given decade. We all know that we are susceptible to just about anything given the circumstances, so this book is merely a guide of what COULD happen in the future or maybe even sooner. That's why it's probably an excellent idea for you to go ahead and skip to the chapters ahead of your current age so you can prepare yourself and even ward off what for many is the inevitable.

I love the breakdown Dr. Manny provides for each of the major life stages:

As I was reading page by page of The Checklist, I couldn't help but be reminded of the perennial bestselling book for new mothers called What To Expect When You're Expecting. Dr. Manny's book is written in much the same manner, except it's a "What To Expect When You're Living Life" kind of book.

Dr. Manny really packs a loaded punch in chapter after chapter because he wants you and your family to know what's coming around the next corner of life. His philosophy is if you are prepared for the health issues that hit most people, then you can be ready for whatever comes your way and quite possibly head it off at the pass so that it never happens to you. What a noble effort and I appreciate that a book like this was not only imagined, but was actually brought to fruition.

For those whose attention span is about as far from here to there, Dr. Manny provides a convenient "checklist" for each decade (thus, the name of the book!) at the end of each chapter. It's very important to go straight down the list of health markers and have those tests and vital signs conducted at the frequency he recommends so you know where your health stands. If you follow Dr. Manny's advice now, then you'll save a lot of pain (in your body and wallet!) in the years to come.

As someone who has lost nearly 200 pounds and kept it off for three years, I was a bit put off by Dr. Manny's "Freedom Diet" plan that oversimplifies the obesity problem. Here's his plan in a nutshell: eat less and exercise more. Hmmm, it seems we've tried to spread that message for decades, Dr. Manny, but with little to no success. In fact, the number of overweight and obese people has actually INCREASED since the low-fat, low-calorie lie has been perpetrated on the American people.

I'm all for joining you in spreading the word about how to fight obesity, but the widening disconnect between the health message you are promoting and the public embracing it has never been greater. Rather than dismissing low-carb programs like the Atkins and South Beach diets as "low-calorie nutrition plans disguised by clever marketing gimmicks," how about encouraging people to find what works for them and follow through with that customized plan? Doesn't that sound more reasonable than dismissing these plans altogether as "gimmicks?"

The fact is I've eaten around 2500-3000 calories per day on my low-carb lifestyle--a daily total that would cause the eyes of many nutritionists and health "experts" to bug out. But I don't worry about calories as long as I am avoiding such garbage carbohydrates as sugar, white flour, processed foods, fast food, junk food, starchy veggies, and high-sugar fruits. Instead, I eat high-quality and nutritious carb sources--namely non-starchy green leafy vegetables and low-glycemic fruits.

Nevertheless, Dr. Manny weaves an easy-to-read writing style with solid facts and a sprinkling of humor to make The Checklist a worthwhile read. Don't forget to read the special "Living Long" chapter where he provides a comprehensive "master checklist" of every test and vaccination you can think of to let you know why you need it, when you should have it done, what results you can expect from it, and what that will mean to your future health. If for no other reason than to have this invaluable list, then get this book!